Accreditation Statement

Ottumwa Christian School is in the process of becoming accredited through Christian Schools International. Since we have started the process, the Department of Education in the state of Iowa views us as accredited. Because of this, we can begin to take advantage of services such as AEA services, transportation services, Title I and Title II services, and the STO program. We are in the process of utilizing these. The most exciting one is the STO program. Ottumwa Christian School was recently accepted into the Legacy of Grace STO program. What is an STO program? STO stands for Student Tuition Organization. The following FAQs are from the Legacy of Grace STO website. www.logsto.org.

Legacy of Grace School Tuition Organization (LOGSTO) is a charitable organization representing 7 accredited Christian schools that receive voluntary cash contributions from Iowa taxpayers and allocates those funds for tuition grants to member schools’ children, who in turn use those grants to attend one of the accredited Christian schools represented by LOGSTO.

Tuition grants made possible by this process will give a choice to those families who would have otherwise felt unable to afford one of our member schools. Parents will be able to choose the school they feel best suits the needs of their children. Your gift will transform the life of a child, and will contribute to a better educated citizen in Iowa.

Yes, as of 2017, the Department of Education does recognize the Ottumwa Christian School as being accredited through a third party, Christian Schools International. Although, we are still in the process of completing the requirements set forth by Christian Schools International, our status does show that we are accredited.

Yes, we offer a program called Wee Care. Wee Care is a child care program offered from 7am-8am during the school week and also 3:15pm-5:30pm. For more information please visit our Wee Care drop down under our “PreK” or “K-12” tabs.

Yes and No. As far as the daily times and early outs, we do NOT follow the public school schedules. Our early dismissals fall on the third Wednesday of the month. Our vacation days also tend to differ slightly from the public

school. When it comes to weather related closing and delays we WILL follow the public schools schedule.

The average classroom size consists of roughly 11 students. Some of our smaller classes may be combined with the assistance of a teacher’s associate. This keeps the class numbers from getting too small but still allows the lead teacher to be able to have individual time with students.

Yes, all though there is no uniform, we do require our students to dress in a modest, appropriate fashion. Mondays are chapel days and students are required to wear dress clothes which include, skirts/dresses to the knee, dress pants or dress shorts to the knee if weather permits. They must also wear a blouse, collared shirt, sweater or other dress top. Tuesday-Friday students may wear proper fitting jeans with no holes and appropriate tops. Please see a copy of our handbook for specific guidelines.

Starting in the 2018 school year, our families will be able to participate and eligible families will be able to receive tuition grants to help pay for their Christian School education. The accreditation team is hoping to achieve full accreditation during the 2018 school year. There is a lot of work that needs to be done, but we are confident we can do it.